Joan Emerson Young was born on October 5, 1931 in Kansas City, Kansas, the daughter of the late Jane Poindexter Emerson and Ralph Waldo Emerson. She passed away peacefully in her home on July 13, 2025 at 93 years, having lived in Kalamazoo, Michigan since 1948. Joan graduated from Michigan State College in 1953 with a bachelor degree in Home Economics. On April 7, 1953 she married T. Kenneth Young. They were divorced in 1995 after 42 years of marriage.

Joan often referred to herself as “A Lucky Old Lady.” Her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren were the great joy of her life. Joan made a sign for her refrigerator that said, “True happiness is knowing that my five children and eight grandchildren have turned out to be REALLY GOOD PEOPLE.” She reflected on this often and was very proud of her family. Joan was loved dearly by her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, her Daves, and her daughter-in-law, Mary. Joan was a classy lady, yet she was never off-putting nor pretentious. She was a kind and loving woman with a wonderful smile and an easy, joyful demeanor.

Surviving are Joan’s children: Carrie Kay Young, Sally (Dave Centers) Young, Andy Young, Molly (Dave) Williamson, and Tim (Mary) Young. Her grandchildren are Andrea (Bruce) Phenicie, Jennifer Young, Teresa (Joe) Youngblood, Nathanael (Kim) Anderson, Cynthia Jane (Aaron) Steiner, Alissa (Bill) Birch, Laura (Nick) Hunter, and Suzanne Young. Joan has fifteen great grandchildren: Emerson Phenicie (child of Andrea), Hailey and Maverick Greene (children of Jennifer), Samuel, Rebekah, Jedidiah, Caroline, and Abel Youngblood (children of Teresa), Freya Anderson-Myers (child of Nate), Holden and Henry Steiner (children of Cynthia Jane), Haven and Maeve Birch (children of Alissa), and Jane and Benjamin Hunter (children of Laura). Joan’s brother, Theodore Pointexter Emerson (Helen Jo Buckley) of Hickory Corners, survives her as well as her niece Kitsie (Wakidi Dwidjomartono) Emerson and nephew Teeper (Ellen Kampersal) Emerson.

Joan and Ken Young raised their family of five children on Spruce Drive in Kalamazoo. It was a constantly busy household with children running in and out–so much laughter and activity. The family enjoyed yearly two-week camping trips to Northern Michigan and have many fond memories of their adventures with the green trailer and the big, blue tent. Joan was a supporter of Kalamazoo Public Schools and ran for the school board in the early 1970s advocating for desegregation of the schools. At the core, Joan was a true feminist–she had a strong sense of self and her value as a woman. She instilled her belief in equal rights for all genders in her daughters, sons, and beloved grandchildren; Joan’s family will carry this legacy in their hearts forever.

In addition to her family, Joan’s life revolved around creating with needles and thread–clothing construction, knitting, cross-stitch, macrame, needlepoint, and quilt making. These creative outlets fed her soul. In the late 70s, Joan wrote three small books about a needlepoint construction technique and for three years traveled around the country teaching this technique. Joan named her business “Young at Heart” and used some of the proceeds to renovate her kitchen with a red heart theme. This gathering space was lovingly referred to as the family’s “Heart Kitchen.” Joan enjoyed using her computer to design little cardstock boxes and filling them with M & M’s. She gave these boxes as gifts for birthdays, holidays, and other special occasions for years. Her boxes always had her trademark signature, “Froggin’ Around by Joan” on the bottom.

Joan worked with her brother, Ted Emerson, at Kalamazoo Foundry & Machine Company, served on both the Hospice Care of SW Michigan and Kairos Dwelling Boards, worked in two needlework shops, and maintained the donor base at Planned Parenthood. For close to 30 years Joan enjoyed living at Leisure Time Condominiums. She served as the newsletter editor and/or Board Secretary for 19 years. Joan was an intelligent woman; she enjoyed staying active and using her brain to problem solve and support others.